HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Strade Bianche (; ) is a
road bicycle race Road bicycle racing is the cycle sport discipline of road cycling, held primarily on paved roads. Road racing is the most popular professional form of bicycle racing, in terms of numbers of competitors, events and spectators. The two most com ...
in
Tuscany Tuscany ( ; ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of 3,660,834 inhabitants as of 2025. The capital city is Florence. Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, artistic legacy, and its in ...
,
Central Italy Central Italy ( or ) is one of the five official statistical regions of Italy used by the National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT), a first-level NUTS region with code ITI, and a European Parliament constituency. It has 11,704,312 inhabita ...
, starting and finishing in
Siena Siena ( , ; traditionally spelled Sienna in English; ) is a city in Tuscany, in central Italy, and the capital of the province of Siena. It is the twelfth most populated city in the region by number of inhabitants, with a population of 52,991 ...
. First held in 2007, it is raced annually on the first or second Saturday of March. The name stems from the historic white gravel roads in the
Crete Senesi The Crete Senesi refers to an area of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany immediately to the south of Siena. It consists of a range of hills and woods among villages and includes the ''comuni'' of Asciano, Buonconvento, Monteroni d'Arbia, Rapola ...
, which are a defining feature of the race. Around one-third of the total race distance is raced on dirt roads, covering between around and of ''strade bianche'', spread over multiple sectors. Despite its short history, the Strade Bianche has quickly gained prestige, and renewed interest in road racing on gravel and dirt roads as a specific skill and discipline. The event is part of the
UCI World Tour The UCI WorldTour is the premier men's elite road cycling tour, sitting above the UCI ProSeries and various regional UCI Continental Circuits. It refers to both the tour of 38 events and, until 2019, an annual ranking system based upon perfor ...
, cycling's highest level of professional road races. It is organized by RCS Sport – ''
La Gazzetta dello Sport (; English: "The Sports Gazette") is an Italian Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper dedicated to coverage of various sports. Founded in 1896, it is the most widely read daily newspaper of any type in Italy (in 2018). History and profile was fou ...
'', and is held the weekend before
Tirreno–Adriatico Tirreno–Adriatico, nicknamed the "Race of the Two Seas", is an elite road bicycle racing, road cycling stage race in Italy, run between the Tyrrhenian Sea, Tyrrhenian and Adriatic Sea, Adriatic coasts. Traditionally held in the early part of th ...
as an early spring precursor to the
cobbled classics The cobbled classics are four cycling classics held in March and April. Cobblestones, like mountainous terrain, are important elements in courses of cycling. Many classic cycle races in northwestern Europe contain cobbled sections. The two Monumen ...
in April. A three-time winner over the pavé of
Paris–Roubaix Paris–Roubaix is a one-day professional bicycle road race in northern France, starting north of Paris and finishing in Roubaix, at the border with Belgium. It is one of cycling's oldest races, and is one of the 'Cycling monument, Monuments' ...
and the cobbled hills of the
Tour of Flanders The Tour of Flanders () may refer to the following cycle races: * Tour of Flanders (men's race) The Tour of Flanders (), also known as ''De Ronde'' (''"The Tour"''), is an annual road bicycle racing, road cycling race held in Belgium every spri ...
, Swiss rider
Fabian Cancellara Fabian Cancellara (born 18 March 1981), nicknamed "Spartacus", is a Swiss people, Swiss cycling executive, businessman and former professional road bicycle racing, road racing cyclist who last rode for UCI ProTeam . He is known for being a qual ...
rejected comparisons between the races, believing the "white roads" of the ''Strade'' "deserved appreciation in their own right".
Thibaut Pinot Thibaut Pinot (born 29 May 1990) is a French former professional road bicycle racer, who competed as a professional from 2010 to 2023, spending his entire career with . Once considered one of the most promising talents in French cycling, he finis ...
described it as "the sixth
Monument A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, historical ...
" of Classic road cycling because of its unique parcours, difficulty and prestige. Fabian Cancellara and
Tadej Pogačar Tadej Pogačar (; born 21 September 1998) is a Slovenia, Slovenian professional road bicycle racing, cyclist who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . His victories include three Tour de France, Tours de France (2020 Tour de France, 2020, 2021 Tou ...
have both won the race three times. Since 2015, there has been a women's race, the '' Strade Bianche Donne'', part of the
UCI Women's World Tour The UCI Women's World Tour is the premier annual female elite road cycling tour. , the tour includes 27 events in Europe, Asia and Oceania – with one-day races such as Strade Bianche Donne and Paris–Roubaix Femmes, stage races such as Wo ...
. It is held on the same day as the men's race, on the same roads but at a shorter distance. Both events start and finish in Siena.


History


Monte Paschi Eroica

L'Eroica Strade Bianche ''("Heroic race of the white roads")'' was created in 1997 as a '' granfondo'' (recreational bike race) for vintage bikes only, on the white gravel roads around Siena, an event that is still held on the day after the professional race. The concept was to recreate cycling's so-called "heroic era" from the first half of the 20th century, when most bike races were ridden on dirt or unpaved roads. In
2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...
, a professional race was spun off the event, inaugurally called Monte Paschi Eroica, won by Russian
Alexandr Kolobnev Alexandr Vasilievich Kolobnev (; born 4 May 1981) is a Russian former professional road bicycle racer. His major victories include winning the 2007 Monte Paschi Eroica, a stage of the 2007 Paris–Nice and he is a two-time winner of the Russi ...
. The race was held on 9 October; it started in
Gaiole in Chianti Gaiole in Chianti is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Siena in the Italy, Italian region Tuscany, located about southeast of Florence and about northeast of Siena. ''Forbes'' named it number one in its list of "Europe's Most Idyl ...
and finished in Siena. Organizer
RCS RCS may refer to: Organizations Arts and entertainment * Radio Corporation of Singapore * Radcliffe Choral Society, a choral ensemble at Harvard University *RCS MediaGroup (Rizzoli-Corriere della Sera), an Italian publishing group *Royal Conserva ...
asked local cycling icons
Fiorenzo Magni Fiorenzo Magni (; 7 December 1920 – 19 October 2012) was an Italian professional road racing cyclist. Biography Magni was born to Giuseppe Magni and Giulia Caciolli, and had an elder sister Fiorenza.#Bulbarelli, Bulbarelli, pp. 14–15 ...
and
Paolo Bettini Paolo Bettini (born 1 April 1974) is an Italian former champion road racing cyclist, and the former coach of the Italian national cycling team. Considered the best classic cycle races, classics specialist of his generation, and probably one of th ...
to promote the maiden event. Monte dei Paschi, the world's oldest still-existing bank with its headquarters in Siena, served as the race's title sponsor for the first four years. In 2008 it moved to early March on the calendar, closer to the heart of the spring classics season.Second Edition of Monte Paschi Eroica - Eroica's status grows with new springtime date
Retrieved on 2008-03-24.
Swiss
Fabian Cancellara Fabian Cancellara (born 18 March 1981), nicknamed "Spartacus", is a Swiss people, Swiss cycling executive, businessman and former professional road bicycle racing, road racing cyclist who last rode for UCI ProTeam . He is known for being a qual ...
won the second edition. In 2009, organizers changed the name of the race to ''Strade Bianche – Eroica Toscana'' and in 2010 to ''Strade Bianche''. The race was also lengthened and one more gravel sector was added, taking the total unsealed sections to .


Strade Bianche

In
2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...
, the start of the race moved to the hilly town of
San Gimignano San Gimignano (; named after St. Geminianus) is a small walled medieval hill town in the province of Siena, Tuscany, north-central Italy. Known as the Town of Five Towers, San Gimignano is famous for its medieval architecture, unique in the pr ...
. In
2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...
, its name officially changed to ''Strade Bianche – Eroica Pro'' after the creation of a women's version, and UCI upgraded the event to a 1.HC race of the
UCI Europe Tour The UCI Continental Circuits are a series of road bicycle racing competitions which were introduced in 2005 by the Union Cycliste Internationale The Union Cycliste Internationale (; UCI; ) is the world governing body for sports cycling and ove ...
, the highest rating for a non- World Tour single-day cycling event. Since 2016, Siena has hosted both the start and finish of the Strade Bianche. Due to the nature of the race and its place on the calendar, the field is usually made up of riders taking part in
Tirreno–Adriatico Tirreno–Adriatico, nicknamed the "Race of the Two Seas", is an elite road bicycle racing, road cycling stage race in Italy, run between the Tyrrhenian Sea, Tyrrhenian and Adriatic Sea, Adriatic coasts. Traditionally held in the early part of th ...
and
Milan–San Remo Milan–Sanremo (in italian language, Italian ''Milano-Sanremo''), also called "''The Spring classic''" or "''La Classicissima''", is an annual road bicycle racing, road cycling race between Milan and Sanremo, in Northwest Italy. With a distance ...
. Although a young event, the race gained the status of an "instant
classic A classic is an outstanding example of a particular style; something of Masterpiece, lasting worth or with a timeless quality; of the first or Literary merit, highest quality, class, or rank – something that Exemplification, exemplifies its ...
", garnering much media attention and soon becoming a desirable entry in classics riders' palmares. Among the winners of the first ten editions feature
Fabian Cancellara Fabian Cancellara (born 18 March 1981), nicknamed "Spartacus", is a Swiss people, Swiss cycling executive, businessman and former professional road bicycle racing, road racing cyclist who last rode for UCI ProTeam . He is known for being a qual ...
,
Philippe Gilbert Philippe Gilbert (born 5 July 1982) is a Belgian former professional road bicycle racer, who is best known for winning the 2012 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race, World Road Race Championships in 2012, and for being one of two rid ...
and Michał Kwiatkowski on a very international roll of honour.
Moreno Moser Moreno Moser (born 25 December 1990) is an Italian former professional road racing cyclist, who rode professionally between 2012 and 2019 for the , , and the teams. Born in Trento, Moser comes from a family of professional cyclists; his uncles ...
became the first Italian winner of the Strade Bianche in the 2013 race.
Classics Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Ancient Greek and Roman literature and ...
specialist Cancellara won the tenth edition in 2016, becoming the first three-time winner of the race and earning a gravel sector named after him.


World Tour race

In
2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...
, the Strade Bianche was included in the
UCI World Tour The UCI WorldTour is the premier men's elite road cycling tour, sitting above the UCI ProSeries and various regional UCI Continental Circuits. It refers to both the tour of 38 events and, until 2019, an annual ranking system based upon perfor ...
, cycling's highest level of professional races. Michał Kwiatkowski claimed his second victory, becoming the second rider with more than one win. The 2018 event was raced in abysmal weather. Low temperatures and heavy rainfall had made the gravel roads exceptionally muddy and decimated the peloton in the early stages of the race. Belgian
Tiesj Benoot Tiesj Benoot (born 11 March 1994) is a Belgian cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . Career Lotto–Soudal (2015–19) Benoot turned professional with the Belgian UCI World Tour team in 2015, after riding for the outfit in 2013 and ...
claimed his first professional victory, after he bridged a gap to the race leaders and left them behind on the penultimate gravel sector of Colle Pinzuto. Only 53 of 147 participants finished the race; 20 riders arrived outside of the time limit. Second-place finisher Romain Bardet called the event a ''"Dante-esque contest"''. The 2020 event was postponed to August 1 from its usual March schedule due to the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
. By the mid 2020s, media and riders discussed the possibility of the race being elevated to a "
cycling monument The Monuments are five classic cycle races generally considered to be the oldest, hardest, longest and most prestigious one-day events in men's road cycling, with distances between 240 and 300 km. They each have a long history and specific indiv ...
" in future, with ''Cycling News'' stating in 2025 that "there is no longer any debate that Strade Bianche is cycling's sixth Monument".
Tadej Pogačar Tadej Pogačar (; born 21 September 1998) is a Slovenia, Slovenian professional road bicycle racing, cyclist who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . His victories include three Tour de France, Tours de France (2020 Tour de France, 2020, 2021 Tou ...
took his first win at Strade Bianche in 2022.
Tom Pidcock Thomas Pidcock (born 30 July 1999) is a British cyclist who competes in the cyclo-cross, mountain bike and road bicycle racing disciplines of the sport for the Swiss . Prior to his release in December 2024, he rode for UCI WorldTeam . After a p ...
prevailed in 2023 before Pogačar claimed a second win in 2024. In 2025, the pair found themselves at the front of the race when reigning World Champion Pogačar misjudged a corner and crashed. Pidcock slowed to wait for Pogačar, who would later ride away to a solo victory, becoming the second rider after
Fabian Cancellara Fabian Cancellara (born 18 March 1981), nicknamed "Spartacus", is a Swiss people, Swiss cycling executive, businessman and former professional road bicycle racing, road racing cyclist who last rode for UCI ProTeam . He is known for being a qual ...
to win the race three times.


Route


Course

The race starts and finishes in the
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...
World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...
of
Siena Siena ( , ; traditionally spelled Sienna in English; ) is a city in Tuscany, in central Italy, and the capital of the province of Siena. It is the twelfth most populated city in the region by number of inhabitants, with a population of 52,991 ...
. The route is around in length over hilly
terrain Terrain (), alternatively relief or topographical relief, is the dimension and shape of a given surface of land. In physical geography, terrain is the lay of the land. This is usually expressed in terms of the elevation, slope, and orientati ...
crossing the
Crete Senesi The Crete Senesi refers to an area of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany immediately to the south of Siena. It consists of a range of hills and woods among villages and includes the ''comuni'' of Asciano, Buonconvento, Monteroni d'Arbia, Rapola ...
in the central Tuscan
province of Siena The province of Siena (, ) is a Provinces of Italy, province in the Tuscany region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Siena. It has 259,826 inhabitants. Geography The province is divided into seven historical areas: * Alta Val d'Elsa * Chian ...
. The route is characterized by the presence of white gravel roads; unpaved country lanes winding through the hills and vineyards of the Chianti region. There are sectors of gravel in varying lengths and difficulty, with the 2025 edition of the race featuring of dirt roads. Additional gravel sectors have been added to the route over time, rising from of gravel in 2016 to over of gravel in 2025. The finish is on Siena's
Piazza del Campo Piazza del Campo is the main piazza, public space of the historic center of Siena, a city in Tuscany, Italy, Its name comes from the Italian language, Italian word ''campanilismo,'' which translates to "local pride" and ''campanile'' "bell tower." ...
, after a steep and narrow climb on the roughly-paved Via Santa Caterina leading into the center of the medieval city.


Gravel roads

The white gravel roads, characteristic of the Tuscan countryside, provide the unique character of the race. They are usually country lanes and farm tracks, called ''strade bianche'' or ''sterrati'' in Italian, twisting through the hills and vineyards of the
Chianti Chianti is an Italian red wine produced in the Chianti (region), Chianti region of central Tuscan wine, Tuscany, principally from the Sangiovese grape. It was historically associated with a squat bottle enclosed in a straw basket, called a ''fia ...
region. The longest and most arduous sectors are the ones in Lucignano d'Asso () and
Asciano Asciano () is a ''comune'' and hill town in the province of Siena in the Italy, Italian region Tuscany. It is located at the centre of the Crete senesi between the river Ombrone and the torrent Copra, some southeast of the town of Siena by rail. ...
(). Some of the dirt roads are flat; other sections include steep climbs and winding descents, testing riders' climbing abilities and bike handling skills. Positioning and route knowledge often prove vital. Additional gravel sectors have been added to the route over time, rising from of gravel in 2016 to of gravel in 2025. Race organizers were inspired by the two most famous northern classics, uniting the peculiarities of the
Tour of Flanders The Tour of Flanders () may refer to the following cycle races: * Tour of Flanders (men's race) The Tour of Flanders (), also known as ''De Ronde'' (''"The Tour"''), is an annual road bicycle racing, road cycling race held in Belgium every spri ...
with its ''bergs'' (short stretches of steep hills), and
Paris–Roubaix Paris–Roubaix is a one-day professional bicycle road race in northern France, starting north of Paris and finishing in Roubaix, at the border with Belgium. It is one of cycling's oldest races, and is one of the 'Cycling monument, Monuments' ...
with its gruelling cobblestone sections. It has been called Italy's answer to Flanders' famous one-day races, as reflected by the promotional slogan of the 2015 edition: ''La Classica del Nord più a sud d'Europa'' (''Europe's most southern Northern Classic''). Angelo Zomegnan,
RCS RCS may refer to: Organizations Arts and entertainment * Radio Corporation of Singapore * Radcliffe Choral Society, a choral ensemble at Harvard University *RCS MediaGroup (Rizzoli-Corriere della Sera), an Italian publishing group *Royal Conserva ...
events director, explained before the first edition in 2007: "Cycling needed something new and the riders need a motivation ..This race is unique and special." Likewise, Italian sprinter
Daniele Bennati Daniele Bennati (born 24 September 1980) is an Italian former road racing cyclist, who rode professionally between 2002 and 2019 for the , , , , , , and squads. Specialising in fast Cycling sprinter, sprint finishes, Bennati turned profession ...
was equally enthusiastic about the race, stating: "It was a sensation of turning back in time. I did not think paths like these, where you only see a tractor every now and then, still existed ..It will be an important race that could become an important classic. I can already imagine the atmosphere of the arrival in the Piazza del Palio."


Winners


Multiple winners


Wins per country


Trivia

* Riders who take three Strade Bianche titles have a sector of gravel road named after them.
Fabian Cancellara Fabian Cancellara (born 18 March 1981), nicknamed "Spartacus", is a Swiss people, Swiss cycling executive, businessman and former professional road bicycle racing, road racing cyclist who last rode for UCI ProTeam . He is known for being a qual ...
is the first rider with a stretch named in his honour: sector 8, an sector in Monte Sante Marie. * The youngest winner was
Moreno Moser Moreno Moser (born 25 December 1990) is an Italian former professional road racing cyclist, who rode professionally between 2012 and 2019 for the , , and the teams. Born in Trento, Moser comes from a family of professional cyclists; his uncles ...
in
2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...
(22 years and 70 days). * The oldest winner was Fabian Cancellara in
2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...
(34 years and 353 days). * Three riders – Alessandro Ballan,
Peter Sagan Peter Sagan (; born 26 January 1990) is a Slovak former professional cyclist who competed in road bicycle racing and mountain bicycle racing. Sagan had a successful junior cyclo-cross and mountain bike racing career, winning the junior cross-c ...
and Greg Van Avermaet – finished second on two occasions. None of them have ever won the race.


Strade Bianche Donne

A women's race, the '' Strade Bianche Donne'', was inaugurated in 2015. Part of the
UCI Women's World Tour The UCI Women's World Tour is the premier annual female elite road cycling tour. , the tour includes 27 events in Europe, Asia and Oceania – with one-day races such as Strade Bianche Donne and Paris–Roubaix Femmes, stage races such as Wo ...
, it is held on the same day as the men's race, on the same roads but at a shorter distance. The women's race is run over , containing of gravel roads spread over eight sectors. American
Megan Guarnier Megan Guarnier (born May 4, 1985) is an American former racing cyclist, who rode professionally between 2010 and 2019 for the , and teams. She won the United States National Road Race Championships three times (2012, 2015–16), major races ...
won the inaugural event in 2015, with Dutch rider's
Annemiek van Vleuten Annemiek van Vleuten (; born 8 October 1982) is a retired Dutch professional Bicycle racing, road racing cyclist, who most recently rode for UCI Women's Team, UCI Women's WorldTeam . Van Vleuten is twice a winner of both the UCI Road World Cha ...
, and
Demi Vollering Adriana Geertruida "Demi" Vollering (; born 15 November 1996) is a Dutch professional bicycle racing, racing cyclist who rides for UCI Women's Team, UCI Women's WorldTeam FDJ–Suez. Considered one of the greatest riders of her generation, sh ...
, and Belgian rider
Lotte Kopecky Lotte Kopecky (; born 10 November 1995) is a Belgian road and track Cycle sport, racing cyclist, who rides for UCI Women's Team, UCI Women's WorldTeam , and the UCI Road World Championships – Women's road race, 2023 and 2024 UCI Elite Women's W ...
having won two editions of the race.


References


External links

* {{UCI World Tour UCI World Tour races UCI Europe Tour races Cycle races in Italy Recurring sporting events established in 2007 2007 establishments in Italy